Jedi Knight Anakin Skywalker followed the droid starfighter that R2-D2 had designated intently with his eyes. He guided his ship up and to the right, firing his lasers as he did so. The shot streaked into space toward the droid, coming from an angle that the droid had no hope on anticipating, let alone avoiding. By the time its sensors alerted it to the threat, it had approximately four-tenths of a second to react. Not even droids are that fast.

Anakin grinned as he flew through the cloud of expanding debris and Artoo chattered in excitment. This was what he was most comfortable doing: flying. Something he had been doing since before he could walk. Encased in his modified starfighter, he was invincible, and he was at peace. Unlike someone I know, he smiled.

The voice of said person startled him out of his reverie.

"Look out, four droids inbound!" the voice warned in clipped Coruscanti, a voice that Anakin knew as well as his own: his best friend, and former Jedi Master, Obi-Wan Kenobi.

"Not a problem, Master," Anakin said, grinning. "I have a few tricks up my sleeve."

"Oh no," Obi-Wan shot back. "I recall you saying the same thing on Cato Nemodia before the ... incident."

"Master, will you ever let that go?"

"Never. It allows me to reign you in whenever I need it."

Anakin gunned his engine, soaring right into the middle of the droids. "Trust me."

Anakin's maneuver startled the droids so badly that they swiveled their laser cannons and began firing at him blindly. Anakin pulled his starfighter out with a quick turn and thrust of his engines, and the droids cut themselves to pieces with their own fire.

Obi-Wan's voice was filled with sarcasm. "I see it. Oh, this is going to be easy!"

He turned his communicator to Red Squadron's frequency. "Odd Ball, do you copy?"

"Copy, Red Leader." Odd Ball, the clone leader of the squadron assigned to assist Obi-Wan and Anakin on their mission, had served with the two Jedi on several missions. Anakin had never understood why the clone had picked Odd Ball as his call signal, as he didn't seem to different from any other clone, other than his formidable piloting skills. Maybe it was because Odd Ball was easier to say than Clone Pilot AD-4587. If they both survived this battle, he would ask him. "Locking S-foils in attack position."

A swarm of droid starfighters and trifighters took off from the command ship and closed in on the small, determined group. The fighters outnumbered the Jedi and their clone allies by at least ten to one. Odds most sane beings in the galaxy would consider impossible. But the word impossible was not a part of Anakin Skywalker and Obi-Wan Kenobi's vocabulary.

Anakin smiled. "This is where the fun begins."

**************************************************

There weren't many things in the galaxy that could rattle Obi-Wan Kenobi. When he was only 18 years old he had defeated a Sith Lord. He had battled the most deadly man in the galaxy in Jango Fett and emerged unscathed. He had pulled himself out of too many death-defying

LuvEwan: You like my style? Glad to here it! I'm not anything close to a professional, but hopefully I can keep you entertained.

Here's the next post. It's long, but I couldn't find a good stopping point. Enjoy!
**************************************************Chapter 2

Obi-Wan and Anakin stepped off of the elevator on the highest level of the Invisible Hand?s observation spire. They moved warily, checking around corners and covering each other, alert for a possible ambush. They were taking no chances, having already had to endure a few surprises including an ambush by Greivous?s MagnaGuard droids, a swim through the ship?s fuel line that had resulted in a huge explosion, and the ups and downs of the ship?s turbolifts. Despite the seriousness of the situation, Anakin could not resist making a comment.

?Excellent choice of escape route, Master. If I had known we would have to swim through starship fuel, I would have brought an extra set of robes.?

Obi-Wan rolled his eyes and returned the jibe. ?And if I had known that your droid have given us such trouble in the elevators, I would have taken the stairs.?

They reached the door to the observation platform and opened it easily. Three walls of windows gave a spectacular view of the raging battle outside, but Anakin was focused on the erect figure of the Chancellor, shackled in a throne-like chair. The two Jedi quickly made their way down the stairs and over to him.

Obi-Wan, ever formal, bowed respectfully. ?Chancellor.?

Anakin spoke in a much more familiar way, concern for his old friend slipping into his tone. ?Are you alright??

Chancellor Palpatine turned his face to Anakin, seeming to notice him for the first time. ?Count Dooku.?

Anakin and Obi-Wan turned to face the door in time to see the leader of the Confederacy of Independent Systems march through it, flanked by a pair of super battle droids. He flipped effortlessly over the railing and made straight for them. One hand rested lightly on his lightsaber.

Seeing the Sith Lord stride confidently toward them, Anakin felt a burst of hot anger rush through him, a hungry flame from the dragon in his chest that he had enticed into slumber. This man had betrayed the Jedi and the Republic, taken his hand, and plunged the galaxy into a war that had caused the deaths of millions. Anakin flexed his artificial right hand, a reminder of his last encounter with Dooku. He forcibly restrained himself from charging forward and hacking the man?s head off; that angry impulse was what had cost him his arm in the first place.

Obi-Wan felt the conflict in his friend. Dooku was powerful; they would need to work together to defeat him. If they allowed themselves to be separated, then the Count would wipe the floor with them like on Geonosis, and the stakes were much higher this time.

?This time, we will do it together,? he muttered to his former padawan.

Anakin looked at him knowingly, ?I was just about to say that.?

Palpatine looked shocked that they were not running for the nearest exits at full speed. ?Go and get help. You?re no match for him, he?s a Sith Lord!?

Obi-Wan turned to him with a smile that was both reassuring and admonishing. ?Chancellor Palpatine, Sith Lords are our specialty.?

He and Anakin threw off their cloaks as Dooku approached confidently. Dooku extended his hand.

?Your swords, please. We don?t want to make a mess of things in front of the Chancell

*clunks Palpatine on the head with a lightsaber repeatedly* Be silent, oh vicious, pasty-faced one! Let the Chosen One and his mentor be! Stupid Sith!

Excellent post, Darth_Vastor! Outstanding work! I loved the brief part when we read Dooku's thoughts. He will destroy the Sith, indeed! And I also liked his reluctance to kill Obi-Wan, Qui-Gon's former Padawan. Perhaps Dooku was not as lost to the Dark Side as he believed. Ah, well, it's rather moot point now.

sethsky: He hasn't defeated it quite yet. But he will be a better Jedi.

AngelQueenI think we'd all like to clunk Palpatine on the head. Dooku's thoughts were my favorite part of the chapter, and I really enjoyed writing them, since I don't think he's really a bad guy at heart.

Sara_Kenobi: Glad you like it. Thanks for reading!

Jazz_Skywalker: A new reader! Thanks for checking out my fic.

Another long post here.
**************************************************Chapter 3

A huge explosion rocked the Invisible Hand as it took another blast from the many Republic crusiers coordinating their fire. Part of the starboard deck broke away from the ship, the void it left sucking droids and Nemodians out into space.

In the hallway leading to the turbolifts, the lights flickered, and then came back on. Anakin tried the button again and got no response. He turned to Palpatine. ?Elevator?s not working.?

Another explosion ripped through the ship. It sounded worse than the first one. Anakin grabbed the comlick, ?Artoo, activate Elevator 3224.?

An affirmative beep came over the channel. Anakin turned to the Chancellor and gave him a reassuring smile. Then the ship tilted.

Anything that was not anchored down collided full-force with the wall. Anakin used the Force to keep his balance, then pulled Obi-Wan and the Chancellor into the elevator shaft, which had become a hallway with the ship?s new orientation.

Anakin found a control box next to a door and began to pull wires out, trying to hotwire the door open. He gave a shout of triumph when he succeeded. But just before he could pull himself and his friends through the open door, the ship tilted again.

Anakin grabbed the loose wires and hung on for dear life as the shaft returned to nearly vertical. He was now dangling in a bottomless shaft with his unconscious friend over his back and the Supreme Chancellor of the Republic hanging onto his boots. Obi-Wan, he thought as he tried to secure a better grip with his mechanical hand, now would be a really good time for you wake up.

Obi-Wan must have heard him because he gave a shout of surprise and scrambled for a better grip on Anakin?s back. ?Easy,? Anakin told him, ?We?re in a bit of a situation here.?

Palpatine mouthed an affirmative. Apparently, he was a little tongue-tied at the moment.

Obi-Wan looked up and immediately wished that he hadn?t. The elevator was rocketing down at them. Anakin called frantically into the comlick, ?Artoo, Artoo, shut down the elevator!?

?Too late!? Obi-Wan told him. ?Jump!?

They plummeted into the shaft. The ship was tilting again, so their fall became an impossibly fast slide. The two Jedi grabbed grappling hooks from their belts and threw them at an open doorway. The hooks caught, and the duo swung out into the hallway, dragging the Chancellor behind them.

Taking a moment to compose himself, Obi-Wan turned to Anakin. The younger Jedi grinned. ?Well, that was close.?

The two friends laughed. Palpatine, leaning against the wall, did not partake. He didn?t appear to be enjoying himself nearly as much as the Jedi.

Obi-Wan?s mind quickly returned to the present. ?Let?s see if we can find something in the hanger bay that?s still flyable.?

Anakin nodded his agreement and spoke into the comlick. ?Artoo, get down here.? A faint beeping came over the channel.

The two Jedi set off down the hallway at a brisk pace, Palpatine trying to keep up behind them.

There was nothing in the hanger bay that was remotely flyable. Indeed, there was nothing in the hanger bay but a huge pile of droid parts and the wreckage of what had once been Obi-Wan and Anakin?s starfighters.

Not letting his disappointment show, Obi-Wan turned back the way they had come. ?Let?s head to the bridge and see if we can find an escape pod.?

Hey all! Sorry about no post yesterday, I went to the beach with my family and spent the day swimming and tanning. Anyway, happy belated 4th of July to any fellow Americans, and here's the next post!
**************************************************Chapter 4

Jedi Master Mace Windu stood on the landing platform of the Senate Office Building, watching the Coruscant skyline. Mace was almost two meters tall, but at the moment his shoulders were slumped and his head was bowed. Across his field of vision, a dozen fires burned, and he knew that there were hundreds more scattered across the planet. The fires were a result of the orbital bombardment that Coruscant had endured for three days, and the smoking craters that he could see were places where ships in their death throes had hit the surface after being destroyed or disabled in orbit. The Coruscant Disaster Department was already overtaxed beyond their limit, and all across the planet, suffering went unnoticed. Just below where they now stood, a small child was trying to dig his parents from under a colossal heap of rubble. His cries went unnoticed by the privileged senators, who stood in their ornamental robes, discussing the impact the attack would have on their various businesses. Mace did not listen to the fool next to him who was ranting about how three of his cruisers carrying priceless ornamental rugs had been vaporized by wayward fire. He was silent, absorbing the waves of suffering that lapped over him through the Force. The horrors of war.

Coruscant was the cradle of death.

A distant speck became a clear shape, wending its way through the frenzy of emergency vehicles toward them. The Chancellor?s shuttle. The group of people he was with was moving to welcome it. He needed to go with them. His presence was required.

My presence is required out there, he thought. I should be down there, with those people, helping to ease their suffering.

But it would be an unforgivable breach of protocol if a member of the Jedi Council was not there to greet the Chancellor after his rescue, and support for the Jedi was already shaky. If they were to win this war and end the suffering, the Senate had to tolerate the Jedi.

Taking a moment to compose himself, Mace Windu turned away from the fires and headed down to meet the shuttle.

**************************************************

Supreme Chancellor Palpatine disembarked from the shuttle to the applause of the gathered crowd. Smiling his gracious thanks and waving the Senators into silence, he walked briskly toward them. Anakin left the shuttle, but then he noticed that Obi-Wan wasn?t following. He turned to face him. ?Are you coming, Master??

Obi-Wan smiled. ?Oh no, I?m not brave enough for politics. I have to report to the Council. Besides, someone has to be the poster boy.?

Anakin winced. ?You mean, Poster Man. And this whole operation was your idea. You planned it. You led it. You should take the bows.?

Obi-Wan shook his head, the smile still on his face. ?Let us not forget, Anakin, that you rescued me from the Buzz Droids. And you killed Count Dooku. You rescued the Chancellor carrying me unconscious on your back, and you managed to land that bucket safely.?

?All because of your training, Master. You deserve all those speeches about your greatness.?

Obi-Wan laughed. ?Anakin, let?s be fair. Today, you are the hero and you deserve your glorious day with the politicians.?

?You couldn?t have picked a worse reward, Master.? Anakin said resignedly. ?All right. But you owe me. And not just for saving you skin for the tenth time.?

?Ninth time,? Obi-Wan admonished. ?As I?ve told you countless times, that business on Cato Nemoidia doesn?t count. I?ll see you at the briefing.?

The shuttle containing Obi-Wan lifted off and soared off in the direction of the Jedi temple. Anakin jogged to join up with the group of senators. Mace Windu approached Palpatine.